The present invention relates to an improvement of a coin guide device that allows an inserted coin to roll in a constant orientation along a coin passage.
Conventionally, coin sorting devices discriminate inserted coins as genuine and counterfeit, and classify genuine coins according to their denomination, and sort out the genuine coins by distributing them into predetermined coin paths.
In such a coin sorting device, coins that have been inserted through a coin insertion port are guided into one direction by way of a coin guide device comprising a coin guide path, and when they pass a coin discrimination means arranged along the coin guide path, they are classified into genuine and counterfeit, and according to their denomination.
FIG. 6 is a front view of a gate plate 2 showing such a conventional coin guide device 1.
The gate plate 2 a plate that constitutes one side wall 4a of a coin guide path 4 for guiding a coin B that has been inserted into a coin insertion port 3 towards the left in the drawing. The gate plate 2 is arranged to cover the upper portion of a main plate (not shown in the drawings), which is part of the main body of the coin sorting device, in such a manner as to be opened and closed.
The gate plate 2 is hinged on a shaft 5 and it can be opened and closed with respect to the main plate (not shown in the drawings) arranged in opposition to its main face, so that when coins are stuck in the coin guide path 4, the coin guide path can be opened, and the coins stuck in there can be removed.
Along the coin guide path 4, a coin discrimination means 6 is set up to classify the inserted coins into genuine and counterfeit and according to denomination.
This coin discrimination means 6 includes an oscillation coil and a receiving coil arranged in opposition to one another at a certain interval. One of the oscillation coil and the receiving coil is arranged on the rear surface of the gate plate 2, and the other one is arranged on the rear surface of the main plate (not shown in the drawings) at a position opposing the gate plate 2.
Based on the changing detection output of the receiving coil when a coin passes between the oscillation and the receiving coil, the coin discrimination means 6 classifies the passing coins into genuine and counterfeit, and according to their denomination.
To increase the precision of the classification of the coins passing the coin discrimination means 6 into genuine and counterfeit and according to their denomination, it is preferable that the inserted coins pass in a constant orientation between the oscillation coil and the receiving coil, which are arranged at a certain interval.
In this conventional coin guide device 1, the other wall surface 4b of the coin guide path 4, which is formed by the surface of the main plate 10, is inclined at a certain angle in anti-clockwise direction. With this configuration, an inserted coin B is pushed by the gate rail 11 towards the other inclined wall surface 4b as shown in FIG. 7, which shows the cross-section along VIIxe2x80x94VII in FIG. 6, and rolls along the coin guide path 4 while keeping this inclined orientation, so that the distance of the oscillation coil and the receiving coil to the coin passing therebetween is kept constant.
Thus, when the inserted coin B passes between the oscillation coil and the receiving coil in a certain inclined orientation, the coin discrimination means can classify the coin reliably into genuine or counterfeit, and according to denomination.
In FIG. 6, numeral 12 denotes a coin pullout prevention lever, numeral 13 denotes a guide rail forming a bottom surface of the coin passage 4, and numeral 14 denotes concave positioning members which are formed along a forming direction of the coin passage 4 and decrease the area of contact with the coin so the coin is guided smoothly. Numeral 30 in FIG. 6 denotes liquid discharge holes for discharging liquids (such as water) that have been introduced through the coin insertion ports 3.
With this conventional coin guide device 1, it can happen that, due to factors such as the orientation in which the coin B falls downward after being inserted through the coin insertion port 3, the coin B is in an upright orientation on the gate rail 11. In other words, it is inclined with respect to the gate plate 2 as shown in FIG. 8, when it rolls along the coin passage 4.
Thus, when the inserted coin B rolls along the coin passage 4 and passes between the oscillation coil and the receiving coil of the coin discrimination means in an upright orientation, the distance between the coin B and the oscillation coil and the receiving coil differs from that of a coin B with an orientation as shown in FIG. 7, so that there is the danger that the coin discrimination device cannot classify the coins reliably into genuine and counterfeit, and according to denomination.
In view of these problems, it is an object of the present invention to present a coin guide device that allows a coin to roll with a constant orientation along a coin passage.
To solve the aforementioned problems, in accordance with the present invention, a coin guide device having a coin guide path for guiding inserted coins, is characterized in that there is provided a coin energizing means arranged in one of wall surfaces which form a portion of the coin guide path, wherein the coin energizing means is swiveled so as to bias a coin rolling along the coin guide path toward another of the wall surfaces, and is rotatable along a direction in which the coin rolls when it biases the coin.